EEI mutual assistance crews work around the clock in wake of Hurricane Matthew

Approximately 30,000 Edison Electric Institute (EEI) members have been actively committed to restoring electricity to approximately 1.2 million customers who were still without power by Sunday night as a result of Hurricane Matthew.

“While Hurricane Matthew has gone out to sea, conditions remain hazardous in many locations,” EEI President Tom Kuhn said. “In some communities, flooding and downed trees have made roads impassable, creating challenges in the effort to assess damages. As is always the case in restoration, our companies’ initial priorities will be safety and restoration of critical services, while they assess the overall damage to energy infrastructure.”

With more than 3.2 million customers of EEI member companies affected by the storm, assistance crews have been working around the clock to ameliorate problems with the power grid created by the hurricane.

“The mutual assistance network is truly a hallmark of our industry,” Kuhn said. “I would like to thank all of the restoration workers for their hard work and dedication. I also know that affected companies appreciate the support and patience of their customers during this time.”

EEI’s online Storm Center is currently providing information for customers on real-time restoration efforts, safety tips and directions to company outage centers.